NOTICE: We are unable to ship to areas that fall under South Coast Air Quality Management District Rules in CA.
The Best of Both Worlds
As a consumer, the number of options for epoxy coating kits on the market can be overwhelming. Some kits are incomplete and assume you know everything else you need, while others are difficult to install and donāt even hold up to everyday use. The TrueLock Premium DIY kits give you exactly what you need, all while being incredibly easy to install compared to most other epoxy kits. Our team has put a lot of thought into building these kits, and they include everything needed except prep materials for a thick, durable 4-coat epoxy floor with a shine that will make your visitors jealous.What Do I Still Need?
- *Prep Materials: You will need to decide if you want to acid etch or grind your concrete to prepare it for the coating. You do not need to do both.
- *Buckets and mixing sticks/drill mixer for mixing product
- *9″ Paint Roller Frame(s)
- *NIOSH-Approved paint respirators for everyone working on the install
- *Painter’s tape (Important: Tape needs to be pulled while the coating is wet and reapplied to each coat to avoid the tape getting stuck to your coating
- Gloves and clothes that you don’t care about. The coating is very difficult to remove from clothing and skin if it dries onto them.
- Shoe covers to avoid unwanted dirt or contaminants in the coating
- Xylene or Mineral Spirits for removing product from surfaces in case of an accident
*-Required for a successful installation. The other items on this list are strongly recommended. Give us a call if you are unsure on what items you need.
Primer: The Foundation of a Solid Epoxy Floor
Every garage floor epoxy needs a primer. The primer gives your coating a much stronger bond to the floor and vastly decreases the chances of product failure. Using a primer reduces your risk of making mistakes during the installation, as it protects you from air bubbles forming in the coating as well as hot tire lift after you have the coating down. We donāt want our customers struggling with their floor or wondering where it went wrong, so we figured weād include the perfect primer in the TrueLock Premium DIY kit to make your project go as smoothly as possible.
Surface Prep
Preparing your surface for an epoxy coating installation is likely the most important part of the project. It is a very simple process that makes the difference between a coating that starts peeling up immediately and a coating you never have to maintain again. You can easily prep your floor without having to grind or use muriadic acid with our GhostShield Eco-Etch product.
In most cases, grinding the floor is the more effective way to prep your surface for a coating, especially if you already have an old coating or sealer on the floor. You can find a Diamabrush concrete grinder to rent at Home Depot or most equipment rental centers. If you arenāt sure about which prep method is right for you, give us a call at 800-956-4301 and weāll be happy to help you make a decision!
Recoat Times
A common question we get is about the recoat times with this product. Based on 75°F temperatures, they are as follows:
- Primer: 4-6 hours before applying epoxy, maximum of 7 days
- Epoxy: Minimum 10 hours before applying clear, 24 hours maximum
- Topcoat: Minimum 4 hours before 2nd topcoat, 24 hours maximum
- After the last topcoat, allow 5-6 hours for light foot traffic and 24-36 hours before full use of the floor
Chemical Resistance
The following chemicals and substances passed a 72-hour splash and spill test with no effect to the TrueLock Premium 4-Coat Epoxy System:
- Brake Fluid
- Citric Acid 10%
- Crude Oil
- Diesel Fuel
- Gasoline
- Hydraulic Fluid
- Jet Fuel (JP-4, JP-5)
- Lactic Acid 10%
- Mineral Spirits
- Click Here for full list
Our Fastest Shipping Epoxy Kits
Our TrueLock Premium DIY Kits have a lead time of 3-4 days, much faster than any other epoxy kit we sell. No more waiting around for the epoxy after youāve received the other kit components, with these kits youāll be ready to start your project in no time!
Clear Polyester Aliphatic Polyurethane Topcoat
Once youāve got the primer, epoxy, and flake down, youāll need something on top to protect that flake and smooth out the rough texture. This is where the Clear Polyester Aliphatic Polyurethane Topcoat comes in. Each kit comes with enough product to do 2 coats of clear on top of the flake, providing superior resistance against chemicals, weather, wearing, and slippage. This will also give you the high-gloss look that will put the finishing touch on a beautiful epoxy floor. With full cure times ranging from 24-36 hours, there will be less waiting and more admiring of the finished product than with other epoxy coatings.
High Solids Vs 100% Solids Epoxy
There is a lot of marketing you can find out there pushing watered-down epoxy products, which has made it so that high-end manufacturers have to separate themselves from the crowd by talking about 100% solids epoxy and its benefits. The truth is, the average consumer does not need a 100% solids epoxy coating at all. In fact, 100% solids epoxy is so difficult to install that we only recommend it to professional installers. What you need in a product is a balance between the durability and thickness of a 100% solids coating and the ease of installation that comes with a ālower-endā epoxy. The TrueLock Premium DIY Epoxy product here is just that. With the 4-coat system, you are adding game-changing durability to your floor, while making your head hurt a lot less with an easy installation process and a product that is easy to work with.
Our two-component epoxy system is 93% solids by weight. That other 7% is solvents mixed in to make your installation job go much smoother, give your product a longer pot life, and give the coating better adhesion all around. This ratio gives the product the ideal combination of durability, thickness, and ease of installation that makes it great for DIYers and those that want a protective, good-looking coating without a stressful installation. If you truly do need the 100% solids epoxy product, we do have it available. But ask yourself: Do you really need it, or are you buying into the marketing around 100% solids epoxy that is likely overkill and will add unnecessary frustration to your install?